Bobsleigh & Skeleton World Cup: Great Britain claim silver in Whistler

British Olympic pilot Lamin Deen secured the first major medal of his career with silver in the four-man event at the Bobsleigh World Cup.

GB's Deen, Ben Simons, Toby Olubi and Andrew Matthews led the standings after setting a track record of 50.66 seconds in their opening run in Whistler.

Russian Alexander Kasjanov's final run was enough to take gold, with GB's combined time 0.28secs slower.

Germany took bronze with the other British sled of Bradley Hall in ninth.

• 'His life story could be a movie script': Who is Lamin Deen?

Deen's success in Canada seals back-to-back World Cup medals for British sleds after Hall's bronze in Park City, USA, last week.

A day before Deen's silver, unfunded bobsledders Mica McNeill and Mica Moore secured the best result for British women in the Bobsleigh World Cup for over eight years by finishing fifth.

This latest podium finish equals the best result for a British team since Sochi 2014 Olympic pilot John Jackson's second place at the Lake Placid World Cup event four years ago.

"It's fantastic and the morale of the team is so high after a very, very difficult summer, never underestimate the athletes," Deen told BBC Sport.

The squad endured a tough period, with GB Bobsleigh head coach Lee Johnston accused of making a racist comment in 2013, while athletes also alleged bullying, sexism and discrimination in a "toxic atmosphere" in the British set-up.

Johnston hailed the recent success, saying: "I've been in this sport nearly 25 years and this weekend is right up there with anything I've experienced."

Britain's last World Cup victory came in 1993 when Mark Tout drove his four-man team to gold in Cortina, Italy.

With the North American leg of the World Cup now complete the athletes will reconvene for the European leg starting on 8 December in Winterberg, Germany.